Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Summer Supper

For several days after we returned home from our vacation to Michigan, the weather in the Flint Hills was remarkably cool and comfortable. There was no need to fire up the air conditioning; we slept with the windows open and I took the opportunity to do some baking. Cookies, cinnamon rolls, and muffins went into the freezer. They are all gone now, but I don't think we'll get cool weather like that again until September.

I also made myself a quiche. Yep, it's ALL mine! Some Postman doesn't care for it, especially if it contains mushrooms, so I can make it however the mood strikes me. At the time, the vegetables available were broccoli and mushrooms, and I had a few slices of Swiss cheese. Somehow, my tummy is fine with Swiss, sharp cheddar, Parmesan, and feta cheeses. I am very thankful for this! But it's not happy with half-and-half or cream. I've tried using almond milk in quiche, but it just doesn't work too well (too thin). After some experimentation, I discovered that using canned evaporated milk in cooking and baking usually doesn't cause me any problems. The flavor is pretty close to half-and-half, and it's easy to keep on hand.

Oh, yeah...I made biscuits, too! During our long drive to Michigan, I kept seeing billboards for Cracker Barrel with a giant, fluffy, steaming biscuit. One hotel had biscuits as part of their breakfast offering, but they weren't all that satisfying. Fresh biscuits from scratch just can't be beat! I experimented with using coconut oil instead of butter with this batch. Can't say I was thrilled with the results. The biscuits didn't get very fluffy. But they did taste good - better than the hotel biscuits!

Lest you think I neglected Some Postman, forcing him to eat cold cereal while I savored my quiche and biscuits....I fixed him a tasty supper as well! His supper was a summer time stand-by at our house; squash and sausage. (Now that I'm vegetarian, I make a sausage-less portion if this is supper for both of us.) Our garden is finally producing zucchini, but the yellow summer squash plants didn't make it. Not a problem - the farmer's market has a good supply. Fresh basil and onions also go in the skillet, and sometimes I'll add a chopped tomato. Our garden has yet to give us a red tomato without a black bottom, though.

Oh boy...writing about all this yummy food is making me hungry! It's past noon, but I'm not going to raid the fridge because as soon as Some Postman gets home from delivering the mail, he's taking us out for a late lunch at our favorite Mongolian barbecue, HuHot. Our mail lady came by here early today, so I'm hoping that means my hubby will finish his route on the other side of the river early, too.